Stone bottles should be judged by its physicality, its prime importance is the appearance, and age is an added bonus. Each stone bottle is unique, as with objects of nature, no stone is alike, and no carver would look at the stone and carve it the same way. The creation of a stone bottle depends on the skill of the stone carver, how he or she judges the stone and how much to carve away in order to present a bottle, showing off its best.
This is what I have in mind in evaluating the value of a bottle. The agate bottle contains matrix of different colors - red, grey of various shades, white, black and the manner in which they cumulate in the stone results in a pleasing manner, not unlike an abstract painting where planes of colors intersect with lines and dotted with colors throughout the canvas. The large bottle has a globular shape, ending with a wide raised oval foot. The opening is flat and it is clearly well hollowed, The cap on a black disk is of a matching material. It is indeed a beautifully executed snuff bottle.
Dating: post 1970's
Dimensions: 2 3/4 inches wide, 1 inch deep and 3 1/4 inch high
Condition: very good